§6103. Criminal history record information conviction data

Beginning July 1, 2000, certification, authorization and renewal under chapters 501
and 502 are subject to the provisions of this section. A person who has complied
with the requirements of this section is not required to submit to a subsequent national
criminal history record check unless that person has not been continuously employed
in a position requiring certification or authorization under chapters 501 and 502.
A person who has not been continuously employed in such a position is subject to a
subsequent national criminal history record check upon renewal. School vacations
are not a break in employment. Fingerprinting of immediately affected applicants
for certification, authorization or renewal, conducting of the needed state and national
criminal history record checks by the State Bureau of Identification and forwarding
of the results by the bureau to the department must begin on September 1, 1999. [1999, c. 791, §1 (AMD).]

Beginning September 1, 1999, approval under chapters 501 and 502 is subject to the
provisions of this section. A person who has complied with the requirements of this
section is not required to submit to a subsequent national criminal history record
check unless that person has not been continuously employed in a position requiring
approval under chapters 501 and 502. A person who has not been continuously employed
in such a position is subject to a subsequent national criminal history record check
upon renewal. School vacations are not a break in employment. Fingerprinting of
applicants for approval, conducting of the needed state and national criminal history
record checks by the State Bureau of Identification and forwarding of the results
by the bureau to the department must begin on September 1, 1999. [1999, c. 791, §2 (AMD).]

1.Criminal history record information obtained; reliance.
The commissioner shall obtain criminal history record information containing a record
of public criminal history record information as defined in Title 16, section 703, subsection 8 from the Maine Criminal Justice Information System for any person applying for certification,
authorization, approval or renewal. The commissioner may rely on information provided
by the Maine Criminal Justice Information System within 24 months prior to the issuance
of a certificate, authorization, approval or renewal.

[
2013, c. 507, §10 (AMD)
.]

2.Issuance restriction.
Issuance of a certificate, authorization, approval or renewal to any person whose
criminal history record information includes a criminal conviction is subject to the
provisions of Title 5, chapter 341 and section 13020.

[
1997, c. 452, §3 (AMD)
.]

3.Confidentiality.
Any information obtained pursuant to this section is confidential. The results
of criminal history record checks received by the commissioner are for official use
only and may not be disseminated outside the department, except that the commissioner may outsource administrative functions of software
document management according to federal outsourcing standards as described in 28
Code of Federal Regulations, Section 906.2 (2011) and allow access to these results
for that purpose.

[
2011, c. 521, §1 (AMD)
.]

3-A.Fees.
The commissioner shall assess a fee of $55 for each initial criminal history record
check and $24 for each renewal criminal history record check required by this section.

[
2005, c. 519, Pt. I, §1 (AMD)
.]

3-B.Reimbursement of fee.

[
2013, c. 506, §13 (RP)
.]

4.Expenses.

[
2005, c. 457, Pt. CC, §2 (RP)
.]

4-A.Phase-in plan.
The fingerprinting and approval process established by this section for certain
classes of individuals must be phased in as follows:

A. The fingerprinting and approval process must be phased in for all persons regularly
employed in a school during the 1999-2000 school year who require department approval
to continue in their positions and who have not been fingerprinted pursuant to this
section prior to enactment of this subsection. The department shall issue each person
a temporary approval card valid through a specified year from 2001 to 2004. Prior
to July 1st of the year specified on the temporary approval card, the person must
meet the requirements of this section. Once a person has met the requirements of
this section, an approval card must be issued; [1999, c. 791, §4 (NEW).]

B. A person placed under contract by a school and subject to the requirements of this
section, who has not been fingerprinted prior to the effective date of this subsection,
must meet these requirements by July 1, 2002; [1999, c. 791, §4 (NEW).]

C. A person employed as a substitute who has not been fingerprinted prior to the effective
date of this subsection must meet the requirements by July 1, 2002. Beginning with
the 2003-2004 school year, a person employed as a substitute who needs fingerprinting
and a criminal history record check pursuant to section 13011, subsection 8 must meet
the requirements of this section within 8 weeks of employment by a school administrative
unit. A person employed as a substitute who needs fingerprinting and a criminal history
record check must be issued a temporary approval card by the department. The temporary
approval card is valid for the first 8 weeks of employment, except that, for a person
who has been fingerprinted pursuant to this section prior to the 20th day of employment
and who has not received the results of the criminal history record check prior to
the 9th week of employment, the temporary approval card remains valid until the commissioner
determines whether approval is granted or denied based on the criminal history record
information obtained from the State Bureau of Identification; and [2003, c. 184, §1 (AMD).]

D. A regular employee subject to the requirements of this section who begins work in
a school after the effective date of this subsection must meet these requirements
prior to the 20th day of employment. Beginning with the 2003-2004 school year, a
regular employee who needs fingerprinting and a criminal history record check pursuant
to section 13011, subsection 8 must meet the requirements of this section within 8
weeks of employment by a school administrative unit. A regular employee who needs
fingerprinting and a criminal history record check must be issued a temporary approval
card by the department. The temporary approval card is valid for the first 8 weeks
of employment, except that, for a person who has been fingerprinted pursuant to this
section prior to the 20th day of employment and who has not received the results of
the criminal history record check prior to the 9th week of employment, the temporary
approval card remains valid until the commissioner determines whether approval is
granted or denied based on the criminal history record information obtained from the
State Bureau of Identification. [2003, c. 184, §1 (AMD).]

[
2003, c. 184, §1 (AMD)
.]

5.Criminal record information obtained from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The commissioner shall obtain other state and national criminal history record information
from the Federal Bureau of Investigation for any person applying for certification,
authorization, approval or renewal. The commissioner may rely on information provided
by the Federal Bureau of Investigation within 24 months prior to the issuance of a
certificate, authorization, approval or renewal.

[
1997, c. 452, §3 (NEW)
.]

6.Fingerprinting.
The applicant shall submit to having fingerprints taken. The Maine State Police,
upon payment by the applicant or any other entity required by law of the expenses
specified in subsection 3-A, shall take or cause to be taken the applicant's fingerprints
and shall forward the fingerprints to the State Bureau of Identification so that the
bureau can conduct state and national criminal history record checks. Except for
the portion of the payment, if any, that constitutes the processing fee charged by
the Federal Bureau of Investigation, all money received by the Maine State Police
for purposes of this section must be paid over to the Treasurer of State for deposit
in accordance with Title 20-A, section 6103, subsection 10.

[
2005, c. 457, Pt. CC, §3 (AMD)
.]

7.Use of criminal history record.
State and federal criminal history record information may be used for the purpose
of screening educational personnel applicants by the commissioner in order to determine
whether certification, authorization, approval or renewal of educational personnel
is granted or maintained.

[
1997, c. 452, §3 (NEW)
.]

8.Applicant's access to criminal history record check.
The subject of a Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history record check may
obtain a copy of a criminal history record check by following the procedures outlined
in 28 Code of Federal Regulations, Sections 16.32 and 16.33. The subject of a state
criminal record check may inspect and review criminal record information pursuant
to Title 16, section 709.

[
2013, c. 267, Pt. B, §15 (AMD)
.]

9.Right of applicant and commissioner to remove fingerprints from fingerprint file.
Teachers or educational personnel whose certification, authorization or approval
has expired and who have not applied for renewal of certification, authorization or
approval may request in writing that the State Bureau of Identification remove their
fingerprints from the bureau's fingerprint file. In response to a written request,
the bureau shall remove the requester's fingerprints from the fingerprint file and
provide written confirmation of that removal to the requester.

The commissioner may, without notice to an applicant, remove fingerprints from the
fingerprint file maintained by the State Bureau of Identification when an applicant
has had no active credential for 7 years. An applicant may renew a credential after
that applicant's fingerprints have been removed from the fingerprint file upon submitting
again to fingerprinting.

[
2011, c. 521, §2 (AMD)
.]

10.Criminal History Record Check Fund.
The Criminal History Record Check Fund is created as a dedicated fund within the
Department of Education for the deposit of any fees collected pursuant to subsection
3-A. The purpose of the fund is to reimburse the Department of Public Safety, State
Bureau of Identification for the cost of conducting the fingerprinting and needed
state and national criminal history record checks pursuant to this section. The fund
may not lapse, but must be carried forward to carry out the purposes of this chapter.